Discussion

Truth in labeling - Jell-O pumpkin spice pudding artificial flavor

That's what the box says. That's what it is. No pumpkin taste just the spices you would spice a pumpkin with ... cinnamon and ... clove ... sort of the taste of those red hot cinammon candies ... only cool and creamy.

And so true ... artificial flavor.

I have no one to blame but me. It was what it said it was. Curse my seasonal cravings for anything with the word pumpkin on it.

I have an issue with pumpkin beers. Most of the time they involve no actual pumpkin, just nutmeg, cinnamon, etc. But I have had an exceptional pumpkin beer made by a brewmaster friend that was indeed made with real pumpkins and NO added spices. One of the better seasonal beers I've ever had.

Actually, a lot of their beer was like the first beer I've tasted in my life ... excellent brewery.

This year I've noticed about pumpkin desserts and drinks of all sorts that very few actually do taste like pumpkin but more like the spices. The companies that make these seem to rely on the pumpkin color and spicing to let your imagination fill in the pumpkin flavor.

Most Jello (and other brands of gelatin and custard desserts) are no more than sugar, gelatin, and/or cornstarch, artifical color and flavor. No fruit juice, no eggs, no milk, no real vanilla.

Unless you add your own. (Hint, hint) I know you say you don't cook, but not sure making Jello with fruit juice instead of water is "cooking", nor would adding a spoonful or two of canned pumpkin and a dash of real vanilla to the pudding mix be. C'mon, rwo, you kin do it!

Oh I just kept thinking I should have bought a can of pudding, skipped the jell-o and do it myself.

I haven't bought pudding in a zilllion years. You do use milk, so there was that at least. No cooking involved. Add package to milk, wisk for 2 minutes, refrigerate 5 minutes ... pudding ... that gave me pause ... and still I bought it.

Pudding from scratch is ridiculously easy...I made some homemade vanilla pudding from a recipe in Cooking Light and I was astonished at how much better it tasted, and that it's maybe 30 seconds more work than the box.I do get sucked into packaged sometimes, especially for unusual flavors, but have been getting organic which is at least a bit better.

Don't buy canned pudding if you must buy it prepared--get Kozy Shack from the refrigerated case. So much better you could plotz.

I just bought some 'pumpkin spice' Silk Soy, knowing full well that this means flavored with the same sorts of spices that are used in pumpkin pie. As I expected it tasted a bit like eggnog. Note, you can also buy cans or jars of 'pumpkin spice'. This is a well known mix, dominated by cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg.

The name does not imply in any way that it contains pumpkin. In fact, if you read some of the pumpkin soup threads, you will realize that unseasoned pumpkin (or winter squash) is pretty bland.

rw, I thought of you yesterday, as I sat in the Time-Warner building at Columbus Circle, New York...eating a pumpkin doughnut, of all things, at Thomas Keller's Bouchon Bakery http://www.shopsatcolumbuscircle.com/.... Somehow remembered that you always mention looking for pumpkin-flavored delights at this time of the year.Also purchased an incredible house-baked croissant, containing a few slices of ham, a few slices of French Gruyère-style cheese, with a bit of butter on one side of the roll, a bit of mayo (I think) on the other side. Made for mighty good eating on an extremely loooooong flight back to SFO last night. Hope you enjoy searching out more of your seasonal favorite flavor! yes, yes, I know this probably belongs on the Manhattan board.........